Detailed, Step-by-Step NCERT Solutions for Class 12 Economics Chapter 10 Poverty Questions and Answers were solved by Expert Teachers as per NCERT (CBSE) Book guidelines covering each topic in chapter to ensure complete preparation.
Poverty NCERT Solutions for Class 12 Economics Chapter 10
Poverty Questions and Answers Class 12 Economics Chapter 10
Question 1.
Why calorie-based norm is not adequate to identify the poor?
Answer:
The government uses Monthly Per Capita Expenditure (MPCE) of households, which is a calorie- based norm, to identify the poor. However, there are certain limitations to this norm, which are discussed below:
- It groups all the poor together, without differentiating between the very poor and the other types of poor.
- It takes into account only expenditure on food and a few select items. With this mechanism, it becomes difficult to identify who among the poor need the most help.
- Various factors such as accessibility to basic education, health care, drinking water and sanitation are ignored while developing poverty line.
- Social factors such as illiteracy, ill health, lack of access to resources, discrimination or lack of civil and political freedoms trigger and perpetuate poverty. These are also not taken into consideration while determining poverty line.
Question 2.
What is meant by‘Food for Work’ programme?
Answer:
National Food for Work Programme was launched on November 14, 2004 in 150 most backward districts of the India. It is implemented as a 100 per cent centrally sponsored scheme and the foodgrains are provided to States free of cost. The objective of the programme was to intensify the generation of supplementary wage employment.
NFWP is open to all rural poor who are in need of wage employment and willing to do manual unskilled work. Collector is appointed as the nodal officer at the district level. He has the overall responsibility of planning, implementation, coordination, monitoring and supervision.
Question 3.
Why are employment generation programmes important in poverty alleviation in India?
Answer:
The government has initiated various self-employment and wage employment programmes, which help in alleviation of poverty in India by:
- providing an opportunity to the poor to raise the level of their income through government supported schemes
- creating additional assets such as watersheds, water harvesting, canal building, road construction, etc. by means of work generation
- helping in formation of human capital by imparting knowledge and enhancing skills
Question 4.
How can creation of income earning assets address the problem of poverty?
Answer:
Creation of durable assets generates the employment opportunities, which eventually helps in solving the problem of poverty by improving the standard of living of the people. Also, creation of assets such as watershed development works, water harvesting, canal building, construction of roads connecting rural to urban areas and dam construction contribute significantly towards the social and economic development of a country. All these assets are very important for the welfare of the society as a whole.
Question 5.
The three-dimensional attack on poverty adopted by the government has not succeeded in poverty alleviation in India. Comment.
Answer:
Government of India adopted a three-dimensional approach as an attempt to reduce poverty.
- Growth-oriented approach
- Expansion of self-employment and wage employment programmes
- Provision of minimum basic amenities to the people
With the implementation of various strategies to alleviate poverty, the percentage of absolute : poor has declined significantly since independence. However, illiteracy, hunger, malnourishment and lack of basic amenities continue to be common concerns in many parts of India. Reasons which prevented the successful implementation of government’s three-dimensional attack on poverty are:
- There was unequal distribution of land and other assets due to which the benefits from direct poverty alleviation programmes have been acquired by the non-poor.
- The amount of resources allocated for these programmes were insufficient compared to the extent of poverty.
- The government and bank officials who were responsible for the implementation of these programmes were ill-motivated, inadequately trained and corruption prone.
Question 6.
What programmes has the government adopted to help the elderly people, poor and destitute women?
Answer:
The government initiated National Social Assistance Programme under which, homeless elderly people are given pension to sustain themselves. The programme also covers poor and destitute women.
Question 7.
Is there any relationship between unemployment and poverty? Explain.
Answer:
There exists a direct relationship between unemployment and poverty. Poor people lack basic literacy and skills. As a result, they have very limited economic opportunities and face unstable employment. A large number of rural poor migrate to urban areas in search of employment and I livelihood.
The industries in cities, however, have not been able to absorb all these people. The urban poor are either unemployed or intermittently employed as casual labourers. Such labourers have limited skills, sparse opportunities and no job security and hence, they are among the most vulnerable in society. Moreover, the intermittent nature of work compels indebtedness, which reinforces poverty. Thus,unemployment is both the cause and consequence of poverty.
Question 8.
Suppose you are from a poor family and you wish to get help from the government to set up a petty shop. Under which scheme you will apply for assistance and why?
Answer:
A person from a poor family in urban area can apply for assistance through Swarna Jayanti Shahari Rozgar Yojana (SJSRY). However, if a person belongs to rural area, he can apply for assistance under the Prime Minister’s Rozgar Yojana (PMRY). These programmes provide financial assistance in the form of bank loans to educated unemployed from low-income families to set up small industries and shops. Such a scheme encourages individuals to set up any kind of enterprise that can generate employment for them.
Question 9.
Illustrate the difference between rural and urban poverty. Is it correct to say that poverty has shifted from rural to urban areas? Use the trends in poverty ratio to support your answer.
Answer:
Rural poverty implies lack of adequate land, basic dwelling and welfare support through Public Distribution System. The rural poor usually include landless agricultural labourers and cultivators with very small landholdings. Urban poverty is not as intense as rural poverty since a wide variety of jobs are available in urban areas.
The urban poor do jobs such as cart and rickshaw pullers that involve physical labour or menial jobs such as sweeping streets and providing domestic help to make a living. The people involved in such jobs are mostly illiterate and unskilled. The table below shows the estimates of poverty in rural and urban areas in India during 1973-74 and 201 1-12.
| Poverty Ratio (%) | ||
| Year | Rural | Urban |
| 2004-05 | 41.8 | 25.7 |
| 2011-12 | 25.7 | 13.7 |
The poverty ratio in rural area declined by 38 percent from 41.8 per cent in 2004-05 to 25.7 per cent in 201 1-12. In urban areas, on the other hand, the poverty ratio has declined by 46 per cent from 25.7 percent to 13.7 percent during the period 2004-05 and 201 1-12. The percentage decline is more in urban area. These trends, therefore, do not reflect any major shift of poverty from rural to urban areas.
Question 10.
Suppose you are a resident of village, suggest a few measures to tackle the problem of poverty.
Answer:
Following measures can be taken to tackle the problem of poverty:
- Generation of employment opportunities
- Training of unskilled workers
- Development of cottage and small scale industries
- Improvement in social and economic infrastructure such as schools, roads, hospitals, power, telecom, IT services, training institutions, etc.
- Facilities for education, health and safe drinking water
- Financial assistance for generation income and assets